After spending a day exploring Kunoy, Klaksvík, and Kalsoy (say that 5 times fast!), Matt and I headed to visit Gjógv! There aren’t too many places outside of Tórshavn to spend the night (especially in the northwestern area), but Gjógv is a spot many people stay in because it has a great guesthouse. Even if you don’t need a place to spend the night, Gjógv is a great little village in the Faroe Islands to explore! 🙂
Driving to Gjógv
Driving to Gjógv is not for the faint of heart!
Much of the road is winding up a steep mountain, and to make matters worse, it’s one lane for two way traffic. Yep, you read that right. There is ONE lane literally on the edge of a mountain for cars on both sides to drive. There are occasional spots where it’s wider so you can pull over to avoid a collision, but there weren’t as many of those as I would have liked!
The road was bad enough when we had clear skies the drive to Gjógv, but the next morning was incredibly foggy so we wouldn’t have been able to see any traffic coming towards us until it was too late. Thankfully, there were very few cars on this road, but it was still one of the most nerve-wracking experiences of my life! If you are afraid of heights or aren’t a very experienced driver, I wouldn’t recommend driving to Gjógv.
But the views along the drive were pretty amazing 🙂
That narrow road is for two way traffic, AND there aren’t always guard rails!
Where to stay in Gjógv
After Matt and I (miraculously) made it to Gjógv in one piece, we checked into Gjaargarður Guesthouse before going out to explore. Gjaargarður Guesthouse had simple rooms, which was perfectly fine since we we just there to sleep and take hot showers after our long day of hiking! They served a very nice continental breakfast in the morning, so Matt and I were able to fill up on food since there aren’t really any restaurants in the area.
After getting settled at Gjaargarður Guesthouse, we went to explore Gjógv! You can take a hike up a cliff, but we were pretty tired from our long hike earlier and it was around 9 p.m. at this point (and yes, the sun was nowhere near setting, as you’ll see in the photos!) so we just walked around the town and down towards the water.
Gjógv literally means “gorge” because of the gorge that runs from the town to the sea. It has been around since before the 1500s as a fishing village, and fewer than 50 people live there now! Even though it’s so small, it does have a school dating back to the 1800s and a church from the 1920s. It also has a helicopter pad for emergencies, which makes a lot of sense considering how crazy the road to get to Gjógv is!
The sun was kind of starting to set around 10 pm, but it never really got completely dark while we were in the Faroe Islands
We explored Gjógv for a couple of hours before calling it a night, but if you want to do some of the hikes in the area, I would budget a few more hours. If you’re looking for a little village in the Faroe Islands to explore or if you need a place to spend the night, I definitely recommend Gjógv! 🙂
Amazing Picture
Thanks!
it sounds very breathtaking! , Thanks for sharing.
Thanks!
This destination looks absolutely breathtaking, adding it to my travel bucket list!
I highly recommend it!
One day we will take our motorhome to the Faroe Islands- it looks amazing! Thanks for the inspiration!
That sounds awesome! Just make sure it’s narrow enough for all the crazy winding roads!
Great photos again Julia. Its funny, I never really thought about exploring the Faroe Islands when I lived in the UK but now I live in the southern hemisphere I really want to go! I would like to try out the hikes you mention.
Thank you! 🙂 It’s definitely worth a visit the next time you’re in the UK!
I’ve never really considered the Faroe Islands as a potential destination, but your recent posts (and stunning photos!) are really selling me on it! Gjógv looks so picturesque, as well! Reminds me a bit of rural Iceland.
Thank you! 🙂 Yes it’s really similar to Iceland!
OMG Faroe Islands is, literally, my dream. Which city did you fly out of to get to Faroe Islands?
It’s absolutely incredible! 🙂 We flew from Copenhagen!
Beautiful! I have always wanted to go to the Faroe Islands!
It’s definitely worth a visit! 🙂
Wow, this looks amazing. I had never heard of the Faroe Islands a few years ago, but all I’ve seen lately has it firmly on my list. Are there lots of tourists there now or is it still relatively undiscovered?
It’s even more amazing in person! I think we were there before “tourist season,” so we really didn’t see many! We didn’t even see many locals!
So beautiful!! Ugh I’ve been bit by the travel bug yet again!
Thank you! 🙂 I hope you can go!!
Wow, that’s crazy that the sun did not set until 10p!
I love the picture of the gorge running through the town.
It was great having so much daylight! Thank you! 🙂
Did both of you take a turn at the wheel? haha! Looks like the drive was worth it though. What gorgeous scenery! And, I have to say that your style of photography lends itself perfectly to the landscape!
Thank you! 🙂 I actually drove the whole time!
Wow, this place looks so beautiful and remote! What are the logistics for traveling there? And from where?
It really is! You can get to the Faroe Islands by plane, and then I rented a car to drive there. There are some bus tours that you could do, but I liked the freedom of having a car!